Lewis Hamilton feels Formula 1 would benefit from having Fernando Alonso return to the front of the field as the Spaniard’s future remains uncertain.
The current Championship leader also feels it is time for the McLaren F1 Team to rejoin the battle at the front of the field after too many years in the wilderness.
Since joining the McLaren Honda Formula 1 Team at the beginning of 2015, Alonso has failed to finish on the podium, but with his team looking increasingly likely to switch to Renault power in 2018 and beyond, it could open the door for the Spaniard to fight where Hamilton feels he deserves to be – at the sharp end of the grid.
Speaking during the pre-Singapore Grand Prix press conference on Thursday, the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team hopes that Alonso does find himself in a competitive drive in 2018, whether it is with McLaren or elsewhere, as he would prefer to see the best drivers and teams at the front of the field.
“I hope that he has got a car to fight with us next year, I think that only adds to the spectacle and the challenge,” said Hamilton.
“We want to see the best drivers and the best teams up there and it’s been a shame not to have McLaren where they have historically have been.
“So I hope that whether it’s with McLaren or wherever Fernando happens to be next year that he has the chance to be fighting with us.”
